If You Love Her, Set Her Free
by xBrokenRecordx
Summary: After Shikamaru, Choji, Kiba, Naruto and Neji fail to bring Sasuke back to Konoha, Sakura goes through an even greater brekadown then before. Thankfully Lee is always there to give some good advice. I do not own Naruto.


**In dedication to The Wammy Boys and . To Wammy because...well, because I still owe her a story. And to Sara because she is totally awesome gave equally awesome reviews to my other stories.**

**And so, here is the story.**

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><p>He found her sitting at alone at Ichiraku's, sadly eating a bowl of ramen. After Naruto, Shikamaru, Kiba, Neji, and Choji came back without Sasuke, Sakura had come to feel even worse than before. Rock Lee walked over to the stall and moved the hangings aside to see her more clearly. He silently sat beside her, leaning his crutch on the counter next to him.<p>

Sakura felt his presence but didn't acknowledge it. Instead, she continued to stare at her bowl of ramen that was going cold. The two sat in silence for several minutes, not doing anything but staring; Sakura at her cold ramen and Lee at the counter in front of him. Lee was the first to break the uncomfortable silence.

"How have you been, Sakura-chan?" he asked. Lee immediately thought himself stupid for asking such a question. The person whom Sakura had strong feeling for had just left her. She was bound to be an emotional wreck. But Lee was only trying to be polite, so Sakura didn't release her wrath on him.

"Oh, um, I could be doing better." Sakura replied, solemnly but honestly. She knew Lee wanted to help her. She had rejected the help of everyone else, so this time, she chose to listen. She also trusted him not to say a word. After all, he had risked his life for Sakura to save her from the sound nin during the Chuunin exams. It didn't matter if she had only known him for two or three months, she trusted him with her life. He was the most loyal person she has ever known.

"It's been a month…" Lee said. Sakura only nodded. She was fully aware of how long it's been since Sasuke left the village.

"I know." She replied, hands sliding from their place beside the bowl of ramen to her lap. Lee was well aware of how touchy the subject was for her, but he could tell Sakura wanted to hear what he had to say. The fact that he hadn't been knocked to the ground flat on his back was proof enough.

"I confessed my love for him." Sakura found herself saying. Lee looked up from the counter and turned to Sakura, his eyes widened ever so slightly.

"And what happened?" Lee asked, his voice soft. He couldn't deny the fact that he was disappointed.

"He called me annoying, thanked me, knocked me out and put me on a bench before leaving anyways." She replied, choking on a sob. Lee put a hand on her back, gently patting it before wrapping an arm around her in hope to comfort her. Sakura leaned into his touch, throwing her arms around his waist and hugging him back, surprising him mildly.

The owners of Ichiraku's went on as if nothing was happening. Smart people, in Sakura's opinion.

"There's a saying," Lee started. "If you love someone, set him free. If he comes back, he was always yours, if not, he never was." Sakura took a few minutes to let his words to sink in.

"So what you're saying is that if I truly love Sasuke I'll let him go, if he comes back to Konoha, he's mine, if not it wasn't meant to be?" Sakura whispered against Lee's chest. He nodded.

"But don't worry Sakura-chan! I'm sure you'll find someone someday who loves you undoubtedly. He'll treat you well and protect you with everything he has!" Lee reassured the girl currently sobbing into his chest. And for the first time since Sasuke left the village, Sakura smiled. Not a weak, forced smile. But a truly genuine smile that could light a whole city. One that Lee found incredibly beautiful. Sakura let go of Lee and sat up straight before giving him that amazing smile again. Lee couldn't help but smile back.

"I'll buy you another bowl of ramen." Lee offered. "Since the one in front of you has gone cold."

"Oh no! That's quite alright, Lee-kun…" Sakura protested but Lee had already called forward the old man who ran the place.

"Two bowls of barbeque pork ramen, please!" Lee pulled a wallet out of some sort of hidden pocked in his green jumpsuit and took out some bills. Sakura smiled again.

"Thank you, Lee-kun!" she said with happiness she hadn't felt in a long time. The ramen was soon placed in front of each of them. They thanked the old man before digging into their food.

In the middle of a bite, Sakura remembered something she considered very important.

"Hey, Lee? How's your training coming along? I hope you aren't pushing yourself too hard. Lady Tsunade still wants you to go easy on yourself. " Lee was heartened by her words. The knowledge that she cared about his wellbeing made him feel even happier than he was normally. He swallowed his food and smiled at Sakura.

"It's coming along fine! Gai-sensei has also wanted me to take it easy. But I am more than capable of running five hundred laps around Konoha without his help!" Lee replied. Sakura laughed and the two spent the rest of the afternoon talking and laughing, leaving Sakura in the best mood she'd been in for a long time.

"Would you like to meet here again tomorrow?" Lee asked Sakura at the end of the day when it was time for them to part ways. Lee promised himself he'd do four hundred sit ups if she said no. Sakura smiled for the umpteenth time that day.

"I'd love to." She replied, heartily.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Sakura-chan!" Lee yelled after Sakura as she walked away.

"See you tomorrow, Lee-kun!" Sakura yelled back before continuing down the path that led to her house. Lee smiled before fully realizing she had said yes. In all his happiness, Lee ran to find Gai-sensei to tell him the great news.

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><p><strong>AN: I hope this satisfies everyone's want for a longer story. I know three hundred words isn't much but can't you enjoy the adorableness of drabbles?**

**R&R, please. XD**


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